Warrior's Rite
by KazenoShun
Summary: Matthias has passed on the sword to Mattimeo, but Matti's got one more thing to do before he's a fully-fledged champion.


Disclaimer: I do not own Redwall

 **A/N:** cross-posted from my Tumblr account, RedwallThoughts. This story can also be found on AO3

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The air was warm, quite warm, actually, for the season. Though the season was not yet half over, it felt more like summer than spring. Already small flowers were in bloom, and it seemed that the late rose was to defy its title and bloom early this season. Silver moonlight spilled over the red sandstone walls, still warm from the day's heat. Somewhere out in Mossflower wood a bird was singing softly while a gentle breeze caressed the new-formed leaves of the trees. All this Mattimeo saw and heard on his round of the walls of Redwall Abbey. Though the hour was late, he felt as though he could continue walking for hours.

He was a warrior now, with the weight of Martin's sword hanging between his shoulders just as it had hung between the shoulders of his father, Matthias. He was glad that he had told Tess not to wait up for him. The feast to celebrate the transfer of the sword had gone on long into the night, and likely would have gone longer still had little Martin not fallen asleep on his father's lap. Mattimeo smiled. His son was a season old now. Quiet and solemn, the little tyke was well loved by the abbey inhabitants. Now the babe slept in one of the upper dormitories with his mother. Mattimeo would eventually join them. He had a promise to keep first.

Descending the wall steps, Mattimeo made his way across the grounds to the abbey door, contemplating his father's request from earlier in the day.

" _Meet me in Great Hall once everybeast has gone to bed. You are a warrior of Redwall now. You must learn the greatest secret of Redwall Champions."_

Matthias had refused to explain further, insisting that Mattimeo meet him that night.

With a sigh and a shake of his head, Mattimeo quietly entered Great Hall. His father stood at the far end of the hall, near the picture of Martin the Warrior woven into the Tapestry. A single lantern stood upon the table below the Tapestry, yet the hall was brightly lit by the moonlight which flooded in through the stained glass windows. Matthias was smiling, the sort of grin he had whenever he was waiting for somebeast to discover a surprise. Mattimeo approached with caution, having considered the idea that the 'Warrior's Rite' was an initiation joke of some sort.

"Welcome, Matthias Methuselah Mortimer," Matthias said.

Mattimeo stood very still. It was rare that anybeast used his full title, even in the most serious moments. "I am here, father. What is this secret you spoke of?"

Matthias nodded. "Come here, and place your sword in the stone."

Mattimeo stepped forward, and was surprised to discover a thin slot in the stone floor directly in front of the Tapestry. Uncertain of what he was supposed to do, but trusting his father, Mattimeo unsheathed the sword, _his_ sword, and placed it carefully into the slot.

Matthias nodded. "Now kneel," he said, "And recite the verse inscribed on the table before you."

Mattimeo knelt. Matthias had pulled back the cloth that usually covered the stone table, and exposed a verse carved into the side. Mattimeo placed his hands on the pommel of his sword and read the verse aloud.

" _I, Matthias Methuselah Mortimer, as champion of Redwall do vow,_

 _To always protect and defend Redwall Abbey and all its inhabitants,_

 _To lead with wisdom, kindness, and compassions,_

 _To offer honest council to the inhabitant of Redwall,_

 _To uphold the values of Redwall,_

 _To care for the poor and needy,_

 _To aid all those who come to our abbey in peace,_

 _To never use my sword for wrongdoing,_

 _And to always remember the code of the warriors."_

The final word rung through the hall as he finished, echoing once before fading into silence.

"Well done," a voice that was not his father's said from the stone table.

Mattimeo leapt upright, tripped on his robe, and sprawled on his back looking up at the ghostly figure that now stood before the Tapestry. It was as though Martin had stepped off the cloth and into life, though he was not solid, and he glowed as though a fallen star lay trapped within his chest. "Who?" Mattimeo could not finish the question, his words trailing off in a pitiful squeak.

The ghostly figure smiled gently. "I am Martin, the first warrior of Redwall Abbey. Kneel before the sword once more, what has been started must be completed. After that, we may talk."

Shaking, and still feeling as though his heart might beat out of his chest, Mattimeo knelt once more and placed his paws on the pommel. Martin placed his own ghostly paws over Mattimeo's, and intoned,

" _I, Martin of Redwall, as guardian spirit of Redwall do so vow,_

 _To give aid and counsel to Redwall's champion,_

 _To protect Redwall from those things against which the living cannot defend,_

 _And to ensure that the legacy of Redwall continues in Mossflower Wood."_

There was a sudden flash, and for a moment Mattimeo saw everything. The return from the south with his father; his own birth; the attack of Cluny the Scourge on Redwall; Matthias's arrival as an infant; season upon season of peace; the warriors Samkim, Dandin, and Mariel; more abbots and abbesses than he could count; Martin returning from some quest to the north; Redwall abbey rising from the forest floor over the seasons; the setting of the very first stone. As quickly as it had appeared, it was gone.

Mattimeo shook his head, feeling as though he had just run around the perimeter of the outer wall. Wide-eyed, he stared up at his father and Martin, who stood side-by-side before him. "What was that?" he asked, breathless.

Matthias smiled gently. "That, my son, was the Warrior's Rite."


End file.
